1. Field of the invention
This invention relates to the improvement of guide stick and hoop toys wherein greater ease of operation of the rolling hoop is achieved in modification of the known stick and hoop toys so that the hoop is easily controlled and made to move in any direction except upward, i.e. to the right, or to the left, forward and down. The design of the hoop and guide stick is especially suited to mass production, and is adaptable to a wide variety of materials with thermoplastic materials being the optimal materials for fabrication of the hoop and guide stick.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art involving a hoop and a stick is well described by U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,971 issued July 28, 1987, which is herein quoted directly:
"Around the turn of the century, a popular game played by children included a hoop and a stick.
The hoop would be made to roll in a vertical plane by a child who would run along with the rolling hoop and hit it with a stick from time to time to keep it rolling and to otherwise direct its movement."
Over the years various improvements on the basic stick and hoop toy have evolved which are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,971 above cited, U.S. Pat. No. 3,078,620 issued Feb. 28, 1963 to Frye et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,254,443 issued June 7, 1966 to Olson and U.S. Pat. No. 4,091,564 issued May 30, 1978 to Jasinski. All of these patents involve improved means of control over the hoop via modification of the end of the stick to increase control over the rolling hoop which modifications are evident from drawings of each of these patents.